Game apparatus.



Patentad Dec. 3!,1901.

R. J. GRAHAM.

GAME APPARATUS.

(Application filad. Apr. 9, 1901.)

(No Modai.)

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G .m w 5 My i .P w W UNITED STATES PATENT @EETCE.

ROBERT J. GRAHAM, OF PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA.

GAM E APPARATUS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 689,870, dated December 31, 1901.

Application filed April 9, 1901. Serial No. 55,002. (No model.)

prepared dice, a game can be played which will resemble the game of euchre played with cards.

With this end in view this invention consists in the details of construction and coinhinat-ion of elements hereinafter set forth and then specifically designated by the claims.

In order that those skilled in the art to which this invention appertains may understand how to make and use the same, the construction and operation will now be described in detail, referring to the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification, in

which Figure 1 represents a plan view of the board; Fig. 2, a section of the board through one of the cards, showing the depression formed in the board; Fig. 3, a View of one of the dice, showing all six of its sides; Fig. 4, a similar View of another die; Fig. 5, a similar View of another one of the dice; Fig. 6, a similar View of the four dice; Fig. 7, a view of one of the red chips, and Fig. 8 is a view of one of the black chips.

In carrying out my invention as here embodied, A represents the board, which may he made of any desired configuration, but preferably square, and of any suitable material, but preferably of cardboard or the like. Upon the upper surface of the board will be lines, which will divide the board into four difierent sections and each section into thirteen equal parts. Each of the four sections will represent the difierent suits of oardsnamely,spades,clubs, hearts, and diamonds and in each of the thirteen divisions of these sections will be represented one of the different cards of these suits. These cards may be arranged in any desired form; but I prefer section will be the ace, the next two cards side by side will be deuce and tray, the next three cards arranged in a row will be four, five, and six, and the next row will contain four cardsnainely, seven, eight, nine, and ten. The last row will be three cards, the jack, queen, and king. The center of each of the fifty-two divisions of the four sections will be countersunk, as represented at B. These countersunk portions are for the purpose of receiving the chips C, which will be placed in the same in playing the game. These chips C are fifty-two in nu1nber twenty-six red and twenty-six black. Thirteen of the red chips will have the different denominations of the cards in the suitof hearts from the ace to the king represented thereon, and the other thirteen of the red chips will be the same, only representing the diamonds, and thirteen of the black ones will represent the different cards of thesuit of spades, and the other thirteen of the black will represent the different cards of the suit of clubs.

In playing this game there will also be four dice employed. One of' the dice, as shown in faces the ace, deuce, and tray of'hearts, and upon the other three faces will be represented the four, five, and six of spades. Another die, as represented in Fig. 4, will have the ace, deuce, and tray of clubs and the four, five, and six of diamonds. The third die, as represented in Fig. 5, will have thereon the ace, deuce, and tray of spades and the four, five, and six of hearts, and the fourth die will have the ace, deuce, and tray of diamonds and the four, five, and six of clubs. Three of the faces of each of the dice containing either the hearts or the diamonds will be red, and the other three faces, containing the spades or clubs, will be black. There maybe either one set of these dice, or each player may have a set by himself, and of course they are supposed to be used in connection with an ordinary dice-box.

In playing the game it can be played by either two players or by four. When four Fig. 3, will have represented on three of its are playing, they can either each one play by himself or the two opposite parties can be partners. The section of the board in front of which the player sits is to be his trump, and in beginning the game the first player throws the dice, and if, for instance, his trumps were hearts if he throws all black-that is to say, if all the spots uppermost upon the dice are either spades or clubs--the remaining three players, if they were playing for'themselves, would be entitled to fill up any card they choose of their thirteen, and in a partner game each of the opponents can fill up any card they choose, which they would do by taking the chip representing that card and placing it in the countersunk ring B of that particular card; but if the player should throw one or more hearts he would be entitled to fill up the cards represented by the hearts he threw, or if there were two or more dice having the hearts uppermost he would be entitled to add together the spots representing the hearts in such dice and fill up the card represented by the sum, and if he throws the dice so that one or more of them have hearts uppermost and one or more of the other dice have diamonds uppermost he would be entitled to add together the spots represented by the hearts and diamonds to fill any card he desires. If he should throw the dice so that one or more of them would have diamonds uppermost and the rest would have either spades or clubs, he would simply lose his throwthat is, if the players were all playing for themselves; but if they were playing partners and the dice were so thrown that one or more of them would have diamonds uppermost, and the rest would be spades or clubs the partner of the dice-thrower would be entitled to fill up any card represented by the diamonds that his partner had thrown. This, of course, is with the understanding that the dice-throwers trumps are hearts, in which case his partners trumps would always be diamonds, and of the other two players one 7 of their trumps would be spades and the other clubs. Thus it will be seen that the value of the spots represented by the dice always counts in filling'up cards for the dicethrower or his partner, for when the thrower of the dice throws the dice so that all of them represent the opposite color to his and his partners trumps the opponents are entitled to fill up any card they choose, irrespective of the spots represented upon the dice thrown. The exception to the rule of filling up the cards by adding together either hearts and diamonds or spades and clubs is in the case of the ace, deuce, tray, four, five, and six. They could only be filled by throwing the ace, deuce, tray, four, five, and six of trumps or by adding two trumps togetheras, for instance, if the five of hearts was the'card desired to be filled the four and ace of hearts or the five of hearts would have to 'be thrown. You could not add diamonds to the hearts to fill any of these six cards; but above the six it is permissible to add together any two of the same color to fill the cards. While I have only described this in connection with the suit of hearts, it will be understood that the same rules would apply to the other players having the other suits of cards. The first player, if all are playing alone, or the first pair of players, if a partner game, filling out his or their suits will win the game.

Of course slight modifications could be made in this apparatus without departing from .the spirit of my invention.

Having thus fully described my invention, what I claim as new and useful is 1. In a game apparatus, a board, four sections represented upon the face of the board, each section divided in thirteen divisions, fifty-two cards, one card represented in each division of the four different sections, each section containing cards of the same suit, countersunk portions sunk below the surface of the board in each of the fifty-two divisions of the four sections, chips or wafers adapted to be placed in said countersunk portions,

sented thereon the different denominations of the cards of the different suits, dice having represented upon their faces the different denominations of the cards from one to six of the four different suits, substantially as described and for the purpose specified.

2. In combination with an apparatus of the character described, a game-board, four different sections represented upon said board, each section divided into thirteen divisions, thirteen cards of different denominations represented in each section, the cards of each section to be composed of different suits, countersunk portions formed in each of the fiftytwo divisions, substantially as described and for the purpose specified.

3. In combination with an apparatus of the character described, four dice, each composed of six faces, each of said dice having upon three of its faces ace, deuce and tray of one suit, and upon its remaining three faces four, five and six of one of the other suits of a different color, substantially as described and for the purpose specified.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto affixed my signature in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

ROBERT J. GRAHAM.

Witnesses:

PARKE B. SHEE, l D. EDGAR HOTTENSTEIN.

each of the chips or wafers having repre-' 

